Donna Harris is co-founder of 1776, a major initiative which convenes and accelerates startups from around the world by connecting them to the political, intellectual, social and financial capital that make Washington, DC unique. Donna is also a Founding Member of the K Street Capital angel network and is an active angel investor. She is a Board Member of the Global Entrepreneurship Network, a Board Member of the National Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Georgetown University and an alumna of Springboard Enterprises.

On this episode you'll learn:

-What did Donna see while traveling to startup ecosystems around the world?

-What advantages do early stage entrepreneurs in emerging markets have over entrepreneurs in the US?

-What was the vision for 1776 when Donna and Evan first started?

This panel session is recorded from the ecosystem summit at Collision in New Orleans a couple weeks ago. The topic of the panel was around strategies for small and mid-sized cities to foster and support the growth of their startup ecosystem. Joined by Stanfield Gray, the CEO and Founder of Dig South, Tiffany Linke-Boyko, the CEO of Startup Edmonton, and Matt Wolfe, the Brand and Marketing Director for Greater New Orleans inc. Here is Stanfield, Tiffany, and Matt talking ecosystem building strategies, tips, and tools for small and mid-sized cities. On this episode you'll learn: What metrics does edmonton focus on in quantifying the growth of its ecosystem? How does a large conference like Collision in New Orleans benefit the cities startup scene? What are some strategies Stanfield used to make Dig South one of the largest tech conferences in the South East?

Eghosa Omoigui is the founder and Managing General Partner of EchoVC Partners. Before this, Eghosa was with Intel for nearly 10 years and his last role was as Intel Capital Director, Strategic Investments, Consumer Internet & Semantic Technologies, where he acted as a senior investment professional focused on platform-agnostic consumer web services and digital media-based investment opportunities. Omoigui also drove ICap's investment focus on next generation semantic technologies, smart data and the realtime web. Eghosa was personally responsible for (developing supporting theses for and) sourcing investment opportunities in various companies including AdMob, Jaiku, Powerset, Facebook, LinkedIn, Teracent and Pandora. Prior to this role, Omoigui was Chief of Staff to the President of Intel Capital (the largest global tech corporate VC), and, before that, Chief of Staff for Intel’s Treasury organization, helping oversee an $18B cash platform. On this episode you will learn: What are some of the biggest obstacles faced by early stage startups in Africa before they grow to the size where they can raise a large growth round? What are the big questions entrepreneurs must ask corporate VCs when entering into discussions with them? And what are the big red flags entrepreneurs should look for in their dialogue? Coming from the Silicon Valley bubble into different African markets, how do you think differently about valuations?

Jon Atkinson serves as Director of the Center for Entrepreneurship and Community Development at Loyola University New Orleans, a program he helped found. In this role, he leads Loyola's efforts to provide nationally recognized entrepreneurship education that will help build an innovation-ready workforce that serves New Orleans and the Gulf region. Jon believes that professionalization of local early stage capital, focus on developing a local innovation-ready workforce and connecting entrepreneurship to the Gulf region's legacy industries can have a profound impact on our local economy and community. Jon also serves as the Administrator for Lagniappe Angels, LLC. In this role, Jon manages day to day operations of the investment group and is responsible for pipeline development, coordination of due diligence, and general administration of the group. On this episode you'll learn: What it takes to train an innovation ready workforce? What are a few challenges faced by the startup ecosystem in New Orleans? What are some recent improvements in the City's startup ecosystem?

Host Andrew Berkowitz moderates an All Things Crypto panel session at the Blockchain, Crypto, and Beyond conference in Arlington, Virginia. BCBcon is a full-day conference focused on blockchain technology and crypto. Panelists include Akin Sawyerr, CEO of RocRemit, Jenny Q. Ta the CEO / Founding Partner of VCNetwork.Co as well as the Founder & CEO of Squeaky, Joshua Boles, Senior Managing Director, Savage Funding, and Paul Mcneal the Founder of CryptoMarkets360 and the President of The Sturgeon Group. On this episode you'll learn: What countries are best positioned to be a leader in the crypto revolution, what smart contract platforms are leading, and what cryptocurrencies are best positioned to win the emerging market remittance industry.

Alexandre Vallieres is the Vice-President of AIWorx. AIWorx uses artificial intelligence to help generate data, understand what’s hidden in the data and act on it to unlock its potential. They simplify work and generate value by providing strategic insights and opportunities to optimize productivity. They master the four axes of artificial intelligence: perception, reasoning, learning and action. On this episode you'll learn: What does the talent pool for AI engineers in Quebec look like? How has the Quebec Startup Ecosystem developed since Alexandre started AIWorx? What exactly is Artificial Intelligence?

Sébastien Tanguay is the General Manager of Le Camp, Québec International's incubator. Le Camp is an incubator-accelerator dedicated to tech businesses growth and mentorship, and offers a diversity of services adapted to a company’s development stage, from pre start-up to internationalization. Sébastien oversees all activities in this sector, including entrepreneurship competitions such as Devtech 50, individual coaching meetings and business financing initiatives. He strives to place his expertise and experience at the service of local companies. He co-authored the book Mobile Persuasion, published by Stanford University Press in California, as well as cofounded MyFoodPhone, Inc. On this episode you will learn: How does Le Camp fit into Quebec's startup ecosystem? How active is American venture capital in the Quebec ecosystem? What startup verticals primarily make up the Le Camp incubator community?

Charles Boulanger is the CEO of LeddarTech. LeddarTech is the developer and owner of Leddar, a patented solid-state LiDAR sensing technology that constitutes a novel approach in light detection and ranging. Developed over 10+ years of R&D, Leddar is a unique combination of advanced light wave digital signal processing and software algorithms that enable the production of solid-state LiDARs delivering superior performance and reliability at the highly competitive price. LeddarTech’s sensors are used in multiple mobility-related markets including automotive, intelligent transport systems, drones, and industrial vehicles. LeddarTech technology contributes to improving our safety and our quality of life through applications minimizing the risks of accidents, reducing traffic congestion, and improving transport efficiency. On this episode you will learn: What's it like scaling a company to 100 employees from 30 in just a little over a year? How does the full stack of self driving car technology play out? What advantages do founders have starting a company in Quebec City?

Toyin Umesiri is the CEO and Founder of Nazaru and the convener of the Trade with Africa Business Summit. After over a decade working in corporate America; at Fortune 1 (Walmart) & Fortune 150 (Whirlpool Corporation), she made the leap to full time entrepreneurship to follow her passion for Africa. Following a trip to Africa in 2015 she committed to using her skills and global networks built as leverage in empowering people on the African continent. As CEO of Nazaru (www.nazaru.com), she leads a U.S. based company that drives increased U.S. commercial interest in Africa by not only fostering Business to Business (B2B) dialog that leads to mutually beneficial arrangements but also showcasing Africa's exporters and brands. On this episode you'll learn: What are some of the biggest trade constraints between the US and Africa? What are the strengths and core competencies of each African region? How is Nazaru solving the information problem in African markets?